self-adjointadj.
/ˌsɛlfəˈdʒɔɪnt/, U.S. /ˌsɛlfəˈdʒɔɪnt/ Mathematics.
Of a differential equation, matrix, operator, etc.: that is its own adjoint. See adjoint n. 3 and adjoint adj. 3.
ΚΠ
1889 Philos. Trans. 1888 (Royal Soc.) B. 179 381 Self-adjoint associate equation of the quartic.
1947 P. A. M. Dirac Princ. Quantum Mech. (ed. 3) ii. 27 A linear operator may equal its adjoint, and is then called self-adjoint.
1986 Chem. Engin. Communications 41 267 It is well-known in current engineering analysis that an n x n self-adjoint matrix A has real eigenvalues and n orthonormal eigenvectors.
2016 European Physical Jrnl. 76 30/1 Time cannot be represented as a self-adjoint operator.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, January 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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